Side effects: normal vs. urgent

What’s expected, what helps, and the signs that mean stop and get seen today.

Most side effects are mild and settle within days to a couple of weeks. A few are signs of something serious. Knowing the difference is the most useful thing on this site.

Common, and usually settles

• At the injection site: redness, itching or a small bump. Rotate sites, let the alcohol dry before injecting, and for peptides that sting (GHK-Cu, PT-141) mix with a little more BAC water.
• With the weight-loss peptides: nausea, feeling full fast, burping, constipation or loose stools. These are worst in the days after starting or stepping up. Eat smaller meals, stop when you’re full, go easy on fatty or fried food, and drink plenty of fluids. Don’t step up while they last, and step back down if you need to.
• Flushing, headache or nausea: common with PT-141, and with NAD+ when the dose is large or given fast.
• Tiredness or a mild headache in the first week or two.

Call your clinician (within a day or two)

• Side effects that haven’t eased after 1–2 weeks, or that stop you eating and drinking normally.
• Redness at an injection site that spreads, gets warmer or more painful after 48 hours, or comes with pus (possible infection).
• Feeling dizzy or light-headed when you stand up.
• Shakiness, sweating or confusion, especially if you also take diabetes medicine such as insulin. It can be low blood sugar.

Stop taking it and get seen today

Go to urgent care or an emergency room if you have:

• Vomiting or diarrhoea that won’t stop, or you can’t keep fluids down. You can dehydrate quickly, and it strains the kidneys.
• Very little or very dark urine.
• Severe stomach pain, especially pain that goes through to your back (a sign of pancreatitis) or sits under your right ribs (a sign of gallbladder trouble).
• A racing or pounding heart while you’re resting.
• Yellowing of your skin or the whites of your eyes. It can mean a liver or gallbladder problem.

Call 911

• Chest pain.
• Trouble breathing.
• Swelling of the face, lips, tongue or throat.
• Fainting.

What to tell them

The name of what you’re taking, your dose, when you last injected, how long you’ve been on it, and any other medicines. If you’re not sure whether something is serious, get it checked. And if you might have taken two doses, see missed doses & double dosing.